The core collection of pictures at Dyrham Park was formed in the late seventeenth century by the diplomat and politician, William Blathwayt I (1649?–1717). Dutch paintings were prominent in the collection, including works by Melchior de Hondecoeter and Samuel van Hoogstraten. Many of the paintings in Blathwayt’s collection were purchased in 1693 from his uncle, Thomas Povey (1613/1614–c.1705), who had been Treasurer to James, Duke of York. Others were acquired by Blathwayt through the Flemish painter Jan Siberechts (1627–1703). Family portraits were added to the collection in the eighteenth, nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Some of the paintings from Blathwayt’s collection were put up for auction in 1765. Colonel George William Blathwayt (1797–1871) ensured the survival of the remaining pictures when he inherited Dyrham in 1844. He also added to the collection, notably purchasing five ceiling paintings by Andrea Casali, originally painted for William Beckford of Fonthill Splendens. Dyrham and some of its contents were purchased by the Ministry of Works through the National Land Fund and transferred to the National Trust in 1956.